The News-Herald. [volume] (Hillsboro, Highland Co., Ohio) 1886-1973, 1887-11-03
DRUMMERS.

UhU UMMEhN.
xH1 UNIQUE POSITION THEY e.
CUPY IN COMMERCIAL LIZA
Ne Busiasss Can bs Successfully Osa1oeeoQ
Wlthout Their AiA-Ths Cuses0 - ~
Orisia In EnglsnA--RsAussa - . -
Art-Aequaintaaes Thsir strsngAss1.
The drummer occupies unique peo0p
tion in our commercial system 1any
attempts have been made TO dlslo6U
him, but Notwithstanding this hs cones
up smiling and takes his plscs so1ls.
iting trade - careless and deboAo1s
- II he was not ct all connected Win
the efforts made to destroy his caIliAe.
It 10 fact now thoroughly understoe1
that no business can be successful NM
out the drummer. Price lists, catalog1ss
and photographs have been sent out " &
merchants to induce trade, without o.
tenth Of the result that has accompanies
the drummer's personal efforts. Printo1
matter, through the multiplicity Of print- \
ing presses, has become 90 abundant ~
It attracts no attention whatever, and ~ 4
recipient does not even bestow . glanee
upon It - he throws It into ~ waG>o !
basket. y
Every line Of business nowadays Aoos
ih drummer, who, briefly spsak1nR,
drums up trade for his house. The -
tom had its origin in England, wAEoS {
dickens, with his immortal pen, told q
English commercial travellers and th1ls
doings. A commercial dinner d yst 90
OF the features at all the English aote1G,
where the festive knight Of the gripsaek
presides and is held in much reverenco.
But Yankee drummers can give points
to their transatlantic cousins. They beae
the world in point of sagacity, courage
enterprise, worth and goaheadativenses,
and to the drummers Of effete monarch
les can.say with pride, "There are NO Ales
on u.s."
When drumming was first introdussd
into this country,a commercial traveler
would start out with . whole stock e
goods. He would only go to principal
cities and remain in them until h
all was disposed of. Country mss.
chants would then pay two visits -
town-in the spring and in the fall. A
the itinerant system of doing business
found favor, drummers gradually In
creased, and the frequency Of their visits
made the stocks of goods they carried
lighter and lighter, till samples have come
to be the only things representative ef
the goods the drummer sells. In casss
where the bulky nature of the goods
forbids the drummer carrying samples
along, photographs that are true -
nature are by the drummer exhibited -
his customers in the various towns ON hie 3
route. Instead of the country merchans
making periodical visits to New York, -
is posted on the latest style and bays e
the peripatetic drummer. He gets ~
news, gossip of the trade, and the laAese
story from him as well.
Having outlined the method Of trans
acting business in this country, the me-
ufacturer drumming the wholesaler, ~
wholesaler drumming the retailer, and -
retailer drumming the consumer, Il mnss
not be thought that each drummer In -
respective class has picnic of II in sslling
his goods. Probably the man who origin
ally went about the country with -
stocks Of goods could easily cell thsu
But with an army Of drummers travssD-
ing the country from Portland, Me-, -
Portland, Ore, it 10 only the fellow who
commands attention, is adiplomat In IT,
best sense of the term, 10 Of unassailab1e
courage and indomitable will, 10 not
swerved from his purpose by any OBJ
stacle, is of skillful address, has persua-
sive eloquence and withal has discretion
when to leave his prey, and is shrewa
observer of human nature, and known
how to play upon mems weakness and
foibles, that nowadays is the successful
drummer.
Drumming is now reduced to Q 6no
art. Competition has done away with
friendship and overproduction has made
the drummer sell, when nine times outof
ten the man he sells to don't, won't and
can't, without mighty effort, get rid 81
the goods he has just bought In many.
lines of merchandise the point has beon
reached where every day drummers stand
in line, two or three deep, awaiting their
turn to present their particular srticlo.
Wholesale and many retail establishments
have now their buyer, whose duty II 3 -
resist the drummer's importunfties an6
buy only such goods as he can SELL Ol
course, buyers, as all-powerful individr
uals, are diligently courted. Bribery.
is often limited at, but the buyers, b =
to their credit said, are quite free fro0
this grave offense. They are mostly ~
cruited from the ranks of drummess. !.
and know the danger of accepting bribeo
to tempt them from the path Of duty,
and know as we'll the value of courtesy
and kind word from man in ths1f
position.
They, tell in the old days Of the bene-
fits of whiskey or wine upon an obdn-
rate buyer. But with drumming .
fine art dissipation of any kind is ont ef
the question. The drummer must teo )
his story connectedly, tersely, briefly and
command the buyers attention by HI
silvery utterances. The merit OF tho
goods he is offering for sale has nothing
to do with his success. Goods ayo
judged by the salesman's manner of
offering them. A drummer recently tol0
me that he could sell the dirt on IL
streets, and when I doubted the aasog.<
ton, demonstrated the fact by takinG
some street refuse and wrapping 4 -